We examine the impact of positive fair value adjustments on dividend policy. If fair value adjustments are transitory in nature
and managers are able to assess their implications for future earnings, fair value adjustments in net income is expected to
have no distribution consequences. However, positive fair value adjustments may lead to higher dividends when management incorrectly
assesses their persistence. This can have a procyclical impact because higher dividends increase leverage, and thus risk.
We use a Russian setting that mandates fair value accounting for financial instruments and requires disclosure of unrealised
fair value adjustments in income. We find no empirical support for the concern that dividends increase in response to positive
fair value adjustments. Rather, there is a negative relationship between positive fair value adjustments and dividend changes,
which holds after controlling for dividend policy determinants and any endogenous nature of the revaluation decision. We discuss
several possible explanations for this finding.

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